Blood Ties
by da-super-dude
Summary: Nick and Sara deal with a long distance murderer, each clue blowing their case open much wider. Catherine gets a little surprise – especially for her. . .
1. Chapter 1

Blood Ties

Disclaimer : I definitely do NOT own C.S.I – Dammit ! Though I am studying to become one. I don't own any of the food brands mentioned either. I don't own the book, ' Sin City ' in the C.S.I series by Max Allan Collins, on which this story is '

sort-off ' based.

Nick and Sara deal with a long distance murderer, each clue blowing their case open much wider. Catherine gets a little surprise – especially for her. . .

Pairings : Catherine/Grissom & Nick/Sara

Jim Brass sighed as he caught sight of what time it was - 9 p.m. already. He tried not to look at the clock often. It just reminded him of everything he wanted to do but couldn't. It was going to be long night, trying to catch up on paper work. Besides that, tonight he was supposed to be with Ellie, his sixteen year old daughter.

One of those rare nights . . .

But once again, a case had come up – Grissom and Warrick had needed a warrant to search a trailer and he had had to provide it for them, cutting dinner short. She hadn't shown any surprise. She had gotten used to it by now.

He remembered a time where she had hero-worshipped her father. She had wanted to be like him – ' a superhero ' – saving the world from crime with the help of his trusty C.S.I side-kicks. Her eyes used to fill with awe at his stories of how he had put lots and lots of ' bad-guys ' away. She had understood that he had to leave her alone with her mom at times to do that. It had been okay, Superman did that, Spiderman did that . . . Hell ! Even the Power Rangers left suddenly.

But yet there had been that tiny spark of hope that he would spend some time at home with her. But he had dashed any hope – or love for that matter – by getting a divorce. Her heart was now surrounded by a hard, icy shell. Hope turned to distrust, understanding to indifference . . . like he would ever betray her . . . but too late. He realised, he had already betrayed her by getting the divorce.

How many times had she asked him " Daddy, nothing can come between us right ? " ? How many times had he answered " Yes. " ? God! He had even pinkie-sworn to that !

He checked the clock once more. And sighed

Suddenly, the phone rang, startled, he picked it up. A voice that was trying to stay calm and controlled on the other end, said, " Daddy help ! I need you ! – _We_ need you ! It's mom, and Robin ! They're _burning_ ! We 're at home ! The fire, it's so hot ! Daddy _HURRY_ ! " and with that, the call ended.

Ellie. It had been forever since she had called him ' daddy ' , now it was ' _daaad '_ stretching the vowel sound with a bored tone to it. He sat for a minute, still in shock before he jumped to his feet. The message playing in his head again, and again –

" _Daddy HURRY_ ! " He had to _hurry_, his little girl needed him. He had to play superhero again.

He grabbed the phone and placed two other calls: one to the fire station, another to Grissom. He jumped to his feet, grabbed his coat and ran out of the office at a speed no one would imagine he could move.

He had to get to the parking lot quickly.

Grissom and his crew were waiting outside next to a Tahoe and a Taurus. All they knew was that Brass had called, and that it was urgent. They had quickly dropped everything and managed to get assembled.

They saw Brass exiting the building at a speed that would probably qualify him for the Olympics. This was definitely urgent, not to mention important. He gave them a relieved smile when he saw them.

He stopped to catch his breath, and then quickly told them the address, " You know where the Bella Rosa neighbourhood is ? ". He saw Catherine, Warrick and Grissom nod. " Good, because we need to get there _now_, there's a fire at no.59, now what are you waiting for – _go_ ! "

Without waiting for more, Warrick jumped behind the wheel of the black Taurus, Nick and Sara followed suite. Clicking their seat belts in their places, they were ready to roll.

Catherine got behind the wheel of the black Tahoe at almost the same time as Warrick. But there had been hesitation as it was Grissom who nearly always drove. But he just courteously stepped aside and let her do her thing. " You know the area better than I do, " he explained as he got into the passenger seat. Brass was in the back, with their kits which they had just thrown in – thanks to his urgency. " Yeah, " she agreed after they had buckled themselves in. " Lindsey has a friend who lives in the neighbourhood, but at no.23," she started the engine, " I gotta tell ya, it's one hell of a posh neighbourhood. " She then followed the black Taurus as it made it's way out of the parking lot.

In the back seat of the Taurus, Sara was being bumped around. She'd had no time to buckle in as Warrick, - unlike Catherine who followed driving rules religiously because of Lindsey's safety - had started driving as soon as his belt was in place, not waiting for the others.

" Why do you think Brass has got his panties in a twist ? " said Nick in his rich Texan accent. The line earned him a weird look from Sara and Warrick who risked one as he swerved around a bend.

" 'Panties in a twist ?' " questioned Sara.

" Aww . . . it's just something my mom used to say, that's all, " he explained.

" Aaahhh . . . " said Warrick in the _okay-if-you-say-so_ tone.

" Never heard of the Bella Rosa neighbourhood before, someone care to fill me in ? " Sara said as she struggled to sit properly, she had just missed the belt buckle. She was grasping around in the dark. One of their metal kit boxes rammed in to her wrist.

_ That's gonna bruise. _

She thought as she rubbed it gingerly. She smiled as she saw Nick, though he was buckled in tight, grab onto the handle above the door as Warrick went around another bend.

" Hey Warrick ! You attempting to check us into Doc Robbins' hotel early or something ? Slow down ! " Nick yelled amidst the chaos, " Sara's not even belted in yet ! "

Suddenly the car ground to a halt in front of a red light. Sara seized the opportunity to belt in. She then set the boxes in so they wouldn't go crashing about in the back.

" Anyone gonna answer my question ? " she asked.

" Mine too ? " Nick said looking at Warrick.

He swivelled around to face them both. " When was the last time we've seen Brass like this ? The answer is never. So why now ? Because, it has to be personal - close to home. By the way, Bella Rosa is posh, designed by some fancy Spanish architect. Supposed to be really beautiful, anyways there are fifty-five houses in all. The most expensive house is no.1 and it gets cheaper goin' down. But cheap, if you're rich. The initial payment on one of the cheaper homes is about 50 000 – 60 000 dollars. "

" Wow ! " exclaimed Sara.

" I know what you mean, " said Nick.

By now the car was already moving. Nick and Sara braced themselves.

" But if it comes along a swimming pool, a great porch and backyard, it may actually be a good buy, " said Warrick.

They were close now. It was just 2 minutes away now.

Catherine was almost there now. They couldn't keep up with Warrick's reckless driving, so she had taken her own short cut at her own safe pace. Thanks to that they were going to be there within one minute. She pitied Nick and Sara's condition after the ride. She knew very well that Warrick did not let anyone else buckle in once he was done, no matter how many times she lectured him. When you gave him the command '_ Get there quickly !_ ', you had to make sure you had a will ready. That man could win the Olympics for how long it took him to belt _himself_ in and start the car. Sometimes he drove without a belt.

She could hear Brass saying a silent prayer in the back. Whatever this was about, it really had him worried. And Brass seldom worried this much. He could keep him cool remarkably well when someone was going the extra mile to drive him up the wall. He could even do it through _Warrick_'s driving. Talking about keeping your cool, her thoughts drifted to the ' _King of Cool_ ' seated next to her, lost in thought. Probably thinking about one of his _beloved_ science experiments. She could swear that she had never seen him sweat. Even though he wore black all the time, and it was a warm colour. He never shed one bead of sweat.

_ How does he do it ? _ she wondered.

They were there now and the car had barely come to a halt when Brass sprang out of it running towards some kind of bonfire. She quickly parked and sprang out and grabbed her kit. Grissom mirrored her actions. They hurried after Brass, each hoping that whatever had him worried, would not make him do anything reckless, that he wouldn't do normally.

" What do you think has him worried ? " she questioned Grissom.

" We'll find out soon enough, " he replied.

She saw the black Taurus pull over and Nick and Sara jump out with their kits as though their very sanity depended on it. She thought she saw Grissom half smile for a moment when he saw Sara. She felt a weird, unknown pang of emotion inside of her. She shook it off it was nothing. She'd analyse that later. Now was the time to focus on the . . . fire ?

Grissom surveyed the scene in front of him, Brass was talking to a teenage girl he who was holding a young baby who seemed to be crying it's lungs out, while another young boy stood there awkwardly – clearly in shock. It seemed to be a car on fire. The fire-fighters were putting the fire out. Neighbours were coming out to stare at the spectacle.

Gill surveyed his team. Warrick had just arrived after parking the car. " Nick and Sara talk to the fire-chief, then search the car for clues. Warrick talk to the police officer first on the scene. Catherine you're with me, we're talking to Brass and coming to the bottom of this. " He'd given everyone their assignments.

Catherine and him walked over to Brass and the two kids. As they got closer they heard him murmur " Don't worry Ellie . . . it'll be okay .

_Ellie _? Why did that name ring some kind of bell ? Ellie . . . he'd heard that somewhere . . . but where . . . ? This nagged at Grissom's mind, he hated when he couldn't remember small things like this.

Brass looked up as they approached. He whispered something to the teenage girl who nodded and headed towards the boy, still carrying the baby. She spoke to him and they both walked over to the lawn and sat cross-legged on it.

" Care to do some explaining Jim ? " said Grissom.

" Yeah I guess so . . . " sighed Jim for the third time that night.

He herded them over to some lawn furniture. Catherine and Grissom shared a deck-chair and Jim sat facing them. Head in hands he recapped the phone call, and for the benefit of Catherine: the divorce and how much Ellie probably hated him now.

Catherine sympathized with Jim, she really did. She just wished she could be a better mom to Lindsey.

" I personally don't know what happened here. But she does, so we're taking her, Tyler and Declan back to the lab, for questioning and stuff, " said Brass.

Neither Grissom nor Catherine questioned who Tyler or Declan was. Obviously, one was the boy and one was the baby, but they figured Brass would explain in his own time.

Grissom nodded his agreement, " Tell them to grab any clothes or stuff they want. They should stay at your house for now, " he said.

Brass nodded and headed back to Ellie and the boy and the baby.

" Wow, " said Catherine, " He's really shaken by this. He really loves her huh ? " she thought about Lindsey.

As if he'd read her mind, Grissom turned towards and said, " That won't happen to you. She'll never hate you, you love each other too much. "

She gave him a grateful smile, " Thanks. "

" Welcome, we'd better check on Sara and Nick now, " he said.

With that he turned in the direction of the two C.S.Is.

_Again_, Catherine thought, he had referred to _Sara_ first, then _Nick_. And he had _half-smiled _at the sound of her name _twice_ already. She felt that weird pang again.

_ Focus Catherine ! There is a really important job at hand ! Work always comes before play. _

She tried to shake the feeling off. But it didn't leave.

" Excuse me chief, " said Nick as he waited patiently for the man to stop talking to another fireman.

The chief jumped at the sound of Nick's voice. He turned to face the young C.S.I.

" I'm Crime Scene Investigator Nick Stokes and this is my partner Sara Sidle, we need to ask you a couple of questions. "

" Sure, " replied the fire-chief.

Nick estimated that he was about fifty-two, but he couldn't tell anything else because of the smoke and lack of light.

" Did the fire have an accelerant ? " questioned Nick.

" Yes, there was no way it didn't. For one thing, it had an orange flame, then we saw some kind of liquid next to the car, and the girl over there," the fire-chief waved his hand in indication at a teenage girl Brass seemed to be talking to, " well she said that it exploded when some Robin-fellow, started the engine. "

" So we could be talking arson here ? " asked Nick.

" Probably . . . but it all comes down to what your department finds, doesn't it ? " replied the fire-chief.

"Okay, can we have a copy of your report on this fire? " asked Nick handed him Brass' business card. " Fax it to him. And finally, what is your name ? "

" O'Leary. James O'Leary. "

" Thank you sir, " said Nick quite cheerfully.

He headed over to Sara who was using sniffer to sample gasses produced by the fire. The sniffer absorbs and identifies odorants.

" Looks like we've got the starting point of the fire, " she said pointing at the driver's seat.

Nick had already whipped out his flashlight, and was combing the remains of the car with it. The ambulance had already taken the bodies to Doc Robbins, who Grissom had instructed to start work on immediately.

" I found some weird liquid on the ground, " replied Sara as she swabbed a sample of the liquid and put it into the kit. " There are other stains beside it, I can make out what they are. It's all this damn smoke and the shadow of the car. "

" Well, looks like we need to get the car towed back to the lab, " said Nick. " There's a lot burnt plastic, metal and leather here, I'll need to sort it out back at the lab. " Suddenly he spotted a key chain in ignition. " Where there's a key chain, there's always a key ! " he murmured to himself. He leaned into the car and tried to pull it out – it was jammed ! He tugged it one or two times, before he gave it a nice, good tug, by mistake he turned the key into ignition.

All of a sudden there was a noise that sounded like the engine and fire shot out of the engine. He jumped back in shock, tripped and landed on the driveway on his bum. He had nearly burnt his arm. _Shit !_ The car was on fire ! There was more evidence waiting to be found in the car. " We need some help here ! " he yelled as he picked himself off the ground.

One of the firemen, grabbed a hose and signalled to another to switch it on. Within a few minutes the fire had been put out. Sara walked over to his side. " Looks like we've found where the cause of the fire was, " he said, dusting himself.

" Not to mention what probably caused the fire. It definitely had something to do with the ignition, " she added.

Grissom and Catherine had joined them now.

" Hey Nick, hope you didn't drop anything or scream this time, " said Catherine.

She gave him an angelic smile as she did so. It took a minute for the intended pun to hit Warrick.

" Nice ! Good one, Cath, " he said before proceeding to laugh and high-five her.

Nick turned a nice bright red.

" Aww . . . cut that out you guys . . . " he gushed, with embarrassment.

_ Am I missing something ? _ thought Grissom.

" Could someone fill me in ? " asked Sara. She didn't like being left out of the loop.

_ My sentiments exactly _ agreed Grissom.

" Oh yeah . . . you guys weren't on that case with us . . . " said Warrick.

He was recovering from his fit. But the occasional giggle did break through here and there.

" We were working on an arson case, and Nick told us about this date he had when he was in high school and- "

" I was a freshman in college. "

Nick corrected Catherine.

" Anyway, he and his date were in a cabin up in the mountains and he was barbecuing sausages and then she came along and they started making out. They were, really making a lot of progress, so, they forgot about the sausages. When he was getting undressed, one of the sausages exploded and fell near his feet, causing him to scream because he thought he lost his . . . " Catherine couldn't continue because she was laughing too hard. Warrick was in fits by now. Nick turned to a shade of red that Grissom didn't think he'd ever seen before. Sara started to giggle as she tried to hold it in. Grissom smiled at the way all of them were interacting with each other. Catherine had to lean on Grissom in case she collapsed.

" What did you find ? " asked Grissom, after clearing his throat.

When they had finally recovered, they got back down to business.

" Well it's definitely arson according to the fire-chief, " stated Nick, " there was an accelerant present. He'll fax Brass his report. "

" Good. Stay here then. Get the car towed and comb the rest of the scene for clues. Once you're done head back to the lab and give your results to Greg, then start analysing the car. Jim, Catherine and I are heading back right now we have an interrogation with the two kids and besides, he got a call. There is another case, we just got a call, " he pointed at Brass who was on the phone a little further away. " The three of you are officially on this case now. "

Warrick had just joined them. He nodded his agreement.

" Grissom, according to Officer Jacobs when he reached here, the car was already burning . . . the girl, her name is Ellie Rodericks, told him her mother and step-dad were still in the car. Then the baby started crying so that's all he could get out of her. "

With that, Grissom and Catherine left.

They met Brass in front of the house. He was waiting for the kids to pack up some their belongings and to lock up. Within a few minutes they were out.

" Hurry up Tyler ! " Ellie gently chided, " I've got to lock up. "

_ That answers the question of who is who. _ thought Catherine as she identified the young boy as Tyler. He seemed to be around twelve going on thirteen. He was carrying at least three bags as he hurried after her.

" Umm hmm . . . " he replied.

" Here let me help you, " said Grissom. Tyler silently handed him a bag that looked like a school bag stuffed with as much stuff as possible: most probably clothes.

The baby, who Catherine now figured was obviously Declan, still hadn't stopped crying yet.

" Here let me help, " said Catherine, motioning that Ellie hand over Declan to her, after all she had had some baby experience with Lindsey. Ellie looked hesitant about handing Declan over to her.

" Don't worry I won't hurt him, " she said trying to convince Ellie.

" Fine, " Ellie consented, then handed Declan plus his little, white baby blanket to Catherine.

Declan wasn't too heavy, Catherine judged him to be eight or nine months. She gently swayed him from side to side and then gave him a gently lift upwards. She followed this rhythm again and again. While doing this she gently murmured " Sh . . . sh . . . sh . . . " as they walked towards the car. Like magic, he stopped crying. " Do you have his bottle ? " she asked the kids. Tyler nodded and reached into what seemed like Declan's baby bag and handed it to her. " Thanks, " she said with a smile. She started to feed Declan, who seemed quite happy for something to eat. Brass seemed amazed and the kids were still in shock, but they recognized that she had calmed their younger brother down.

By now they had reached the car, and Declan seemed to have taken a shine to Catherine. " How the hell does she do it ? . . . " muttered Brass, as he got into the back seat of the Taurus. Neither Brass nor Catherine saw Grissom smile as he got into the driver's seat. He had seen the effect Catherine had on kids in many of their cases. She seemed to some kind of kid magnet. He didn't know what she did, but whatever it was, it was one of the reasons she was a great mom – Lindsey adored her.

They put the bags and kits in the boot of the car. Catherine sat in the passenger seat of the car, while the kids were in the back with Brass. Declan refused to go back to either Ellie of Tyler despite all the coaxing. He seemed instantly attached to Catherine, even _she_ couldn't convince him to go back.

" It's probably just because he senses that the atmosphere is sad because your parents are dead and that you guys are in mourning right now. Babies generally prefer to be happy. That's why they cry for food or to change their diapers, it makes them comfortable and that equals to happiness, " she reasoned.

" That's an interesting theory, " said Grissom.

Declan seemed to like her hair as he seemed to be playing with it. He gave a small baby giggle as he gently tugged it. As he gently tugged repeatedly, he kept giggling, it seemed he was content with this however small and pointless game. As he giggled he buried his little head in her shoulder. She ruffled whatever little, red hair he had.

As they waited at a traffic light, Grissom paused to take a glance at Catherine. She was playing with the little fellow. He giggled every time he heard ' Boo ! ' , after a while he covered his eyes with his little hands when she went ' Peek – a – ' , and opened them at ' Boo ! ' . She seemed to enjoy it as much as he did.

_ Fascinating . . . She's like the ' Pied Piper of Hamelin ' when it comes to little kids . . . there has to be a reason for this . . .It would be an interesting study. . . I mean . . . The way the moonlight just gently bathes all her features . . . God, she's beautiful ! . . . Wait ! How on earth did that thought get in here ! Okay . . . Calm Down Grissom . . . analyse this later . . . work comes first . . . _

" Hey Griss ? "

Catherine's voice broke through his reverie.

" Huh ? . . . " he mumbled confused.

" The light – it's green, " she reminded him.

" Oh . . . yeah ! " he said weakly.

_ Damn It ! I was staring at her ! . . . Did she notice something ? _

" Griss ? "

Once more she broke through his train of thought.

" Yeah . . . " he mumbled, just staring straight ahead at the light. He knew it was green, it just didn't seem to register.

" When the light is green, the car is normally supposed to move, " she said with a teasing smile.

He accelerated forward.

_ Did she just tease me ? I think she teased me . . . It was so subtle . . . I love it when she does that . . . Wait a second . . . Where is this train of thought leading ? This is new territory for me, I'm all about my cases – my experiments – I'm not cut out for matters of the heart . . . I need to get back to this later. . . _

Grissom seemed to be on auto-drive or something, Catherine noticed. It started after he had stared at her with a weird look in his eyes. He must have had theory or something . . . but did _she_ inspire it ? She'd have _loved _to think that look had been _more_ than him putting something together . . . that maybe it was about . . . _her_ ?

_ Yeah right ! This is Grissom, not Romeo or something . . . he doesn't do falling in love. He specialises in dead bodies . . . and weird experiments . . . and brilliant theories . . . and not knowing what to do when it came to moral and emotional support. He doesn't know how to comfort someone when they are sad – holding someone else's hand when they are in grief or are sad _mystifies_ him. _

They had arrived now, and both, Grissom and Catherine, completely lost thought, got out automatically. Declan was tired out and almost asleep, yet he refused to leave her. Ellie and Tyler, silently got out, followed by Brass. They grabbed their bags, Brass carrying one of them : Declan's. Grissom carried Catherine's kit as well as his. They followed Brass without thinking. He led them to the rec. room, " You can stay here until you are interrogated, by Nick or Sara, " he told the kids, " Actually I'll be back soon, just give me a moment. "

He looked at Catherine and Grissom, " Meet me in my office, " he said and left.

Grissom nodded and waited for Catherine to finish putting Declan to sleep. A few minutes later she was done.

" Sorry about that , " she said with an apologetic smile. She handed Declan to Tyler.

" It's okay, " said Tyler.

" Yeah, " agreed Ellie, " In a way you helped us. It'll be easier now, you know, to answer questions, without having to worry about what he's up to. "

" It'll also be easier to grieve, he won't sense that we're really upset about something, he probably won't realise anything at all, " the young boy had just said what was on everyone's minds.

" We have to go now, because we have another case. Nick and Sara are in charge of this one. They'll be here in a little while. You're father is going to fill us in on another case, so we're going to go now. When Nick and Sara arrive they will probably want to interrogate you, so don't worry. In case you are hungry, just go down this hall in into the second room on your left – it's a lab – ask for Greg. Tell him _Grissom_ sent you, and that you are hungry. Okay ? " instructed the C.S.I supervisor.

The kids nodded.

" Bye, " said Catherine with a small wave as they left.

In the hallway, Catherine questioned him, " ' Tell him _Grissom_ sent you ' ? "

Grissom just gave her a smile and said " I've always wondered how I would sound saying that. "

They had shared a short laugh over it.

" You didn't sound that bad, you just need practice, that's all, " she commented.

He was lost in thought.

" Now to more serious matters – what was that theory you came up with in the car ? "

" Huh ? " he asked.

" In the car, you had this intense look on your face. The one you get when you come up with a theory – your ' thook ! ' or ' leory ' "

" What ? " he asked baffled.

" When you get a theory, you get this weird look on your face. We call it a ' thook ' , or a ' theory – look ' and then there's your ' leory ', or ' look of theory ' . So what about the theory ? "

" What theory ? "

" The one in the car ? "

_ She thinks I came up with a theory, that's better than suspecting I may have been thinking about how beautiful she looked. Oh no. my mind is drifting back to that territory. Even if I do - and it's not that I do – she'd never be interested in me. She deserves a WHOLE lot better than me. She just considers me a friend . . . _

He sighed.

" Earth to Grissom. Come in. Come in. I think I'm losing you. You're drifting away . . . NO ! "

Once again her voice broke through his day dream. Catherine was in front of him waving her hand in front of his face. He remembered the question and quickly made up something.

" Oh ! That one ! I thought about it on the way here, and it's not that great a theory, it's not possible. "

" Well, what is it ? "

" I don't feel like talking about it. "

" Okay . . . Who do you think is going to look after those kids ? "

" Huh ? – Perhaps some appointed guardian or god – parent. If there is nobody, Social Services will probably take them to live with another family member. Either that, or they will be adopted either separately, or together. "

" That'll be a shame, maybe Brass will take them in. Ellie is after all his daughter. "

" But don't forget, she is around seventeen going on eighteen so she may not want him to, " she gave him a weird look, " I know, it doesn't sound good, but don't forget she feels he abandoned her back then. And she may feel like he may abandon them all. Only her, then it's okay, she can handle it. She is going to graduate anyway. But she is responsible for two younger siblings as well. She will have to be responsible about this. "

" You're right, " Catherine agreed.

By now they were there. Grissom knocked on the door as they walked in. Brass looked up from his paper work.

" Hey, take a seat, " he motioned for them to sit down. They sat. He continued, " You know Tenet Street ? It's on the outside of town, near a place called ' Paradise Hotel ' , it's a strip club, " Brass looked uncomfortable as the question had been slightly directed at Catherine. Grissom didn't even show any discomfort he may have felt.

Catherine rolled her eyes and sighed. " Yeah, I worked there as a stripper, " she said in reference to her past before she became a C.S.I.

" And no, I don't mind it, " she answered before the question was out of Brass' mouth.

" Well, " he explained, " there was a murder near there in an alley way close by. Here is the address, " he handed the address of the alley way to Catherine as she and Grissom, stood up.

Before they left, Catherine looked at Brass. " Don't worry about the past, just be there for her now. She needs that. She'll forgive you in time. " With that she left. Brass headed off to talk to Ellie, Tyler and Declan.

This was my first chappie, hope you like it ! More Nick/Sara coming up. As well a little more Warrick and a little more Greg. R/R.


	2. Chapter 2

Blood Ties

Disclaimer : I definitely do NOT own C.S.I – Dammit ! Though I am studying to become one. I don't own any of the food brands mentioned either. I don't own the book, ' Sin City ' in the C.S.I series by Max Allan Collins, on which this story is '

sort-off ' based.

However, I do own Declan, Tyler, Fire-Chief O' Leary and Police Officer Jacobs.

Nick and Sara deal with a long distance murderer, each clue blowing their case open much wider. Catherine gets a little surprise – especially for her. . .

Pairings : Catherine/Grissom & Nick/Sara

David had collected the bodies from inside car before it had been taken to the lab, leaving the ground under it open and free for the C.S.Is to take a look at it. They shone their mag-lights over the area as they inspected it.

"I think I found some kind of accelerant," said Warrick. He swabbed the dark liquid, he smelt it, and put it into his kit. "Smells like alcohol," he added.

"I've got something here," Sara called out, she picked up some sort of nylon shred. She held it out for them to see. "There are a whole bunch of these on the ground. They seem burnt . . . I don't know if we'll recover anything off of it." she sounded disappointed.

"I've got a theory. Let's try this."

Warrick picked up two or three of the shreds. He held them in his latex-covered palm and shone the UV light over it. They had bright blue all over them. "Well, this is probably some kind of accelerant . . . or blood," he said triumphantly.

"Is it just me," said Nick in his Texan drawl, "but does this smell like a Molotov cocktail to you?"

"Yeah," said Warrick, "But what about the bottle? We need a container."

"He's got you there," said Sara, "Even though I feel it's a cocktail."

"Well, we need facts - not feelings here," stated Warrick.

"Oh well . . ." Nick sighed before he got down on his hands and knees to look for more clues.

Sara bagged her shreds and went on looking. A few minutes later, their search was interrupted by a yell from Nick.

"SHIT !" he swore loudly, causing the remaining firemen to stare at him.

He stood up shaking his hand vigorously. He stopped for a moment. But that was just to pull of the latex glove he was wearing. When he did, they saw that blood was seeping out of a cut on his left palm.

"Hold still, let me take a look at it," chided Sara when she got to him.

"Aaaahhh !" he yelped in pain at the pressure exerted onto the cut.

"Come on you big baby ! Hold still !" she examined his cut more closely. Something glinted when she shone the mag-light over the cut.

"I think there's something in it, give me a moment," she picked up her tweezers and gently tugged at something that seemed lodged in his hand – it was stuck. A few more tugs pulled it loose. Warrick shone his light over whatever it was that Sara held in her palm. "It's glass," he concluded.

"I'm gonna go find the first aid kit," said Nick as he stood up and headed back to the car to look.

"Tell me when you find it," said Sara, "I'll help patch you up."

Warrick shone his torch on the ground. Several shards of glass glinted as they reflected the rays of light. "Looks like it is a Molotov cocktail," he concluded. He bagged the tiny pieces.

"Well, I'm done on my side of the driveway," he announced, "I'm going to go see if I can find anything on the lawn."

"You do that," agreed Sara. She continued to search her area till Nick found the first aid kit.

Warrick shone the torch on the lawn. As he shone it on the edge, something glinted back. It was a small bottle. The kind you find bath salts in. "What the hell . . . ?" he murmured as he picked it up. It was small and green. There was a small piece of cloth poking out. He sniffed it. It smelt like alcohol.

Just then he heard Sara call his name. "I found something. Some kind of dirt. Dark brown in colour," she shone the torch over it as she spoke, "it looks like it came from the garden. She suddenly tilted her head as she noticed something. She shone the torch straight ahead. Warrick stood up, bagged the mini-Molotov and headed over to her. When he arrived he, followed her gaze. She was looking at the hedge.

"Notice something Warrick?" she asked.

"It's disturbed. The firemen probably did that as they went to put it off," he replied.

"Right on. But you missed something." she was interrupted by a yell from Nick.

"Found it!" he walked over to them, kit in hand.

"What did you find?" asked Warrick.

"The kit. It was underneath the spare tire. Must have gotten there when you swerved." said Nick.

"It did not. We would have heard it," Warrick defended himself.

"No way everything is packed tight in here." he opened the kit as if to emphasize the point.

"Two C.S.I 's arguing. Now that is something," said Sara with a smirk.

Nick and Warrick stopped immediately.

"Come on Nick, we don't want you to contaminate the crime scene with the blood." said Sara leading him away from it. Warrick followed, but stopped for a moment and looked back, stared hard at the hedge, turned around and continued after them.

"I don't get it. What did I miss?" he asked Sara.

She set the kit on the hood of the car and opened it up. She opened a pack of wet-wipes and started to clean Nick's cut. " Well," she said, " It depends on where you were standing."

"Aah," said Warrick. He finally understood. "The black and white theory."

"What on earth are you talking about?" asked Nick as Sara wiped with disinfectant.

"Haven't you heard of that story where there was a fight between two friends over a ball placed in the middle of both of them. One said it was white while the other argued it was black. They changed positions and found that the other was right –" Warrick explained.

"And the moral of the story is what you see depends on where you stand." said Sara as she put a band-aid on Nick's palm.

"And that you should always look at something from another point of view when you disagree with someone." finished Warrick.

"Well then, I accept your apology," said Nick with a smile.

"Hey-" argued Warrick.

"Hey Nick," interrupted Sara, "want a smiley face on that?" she pointed at his band-aid.

"Yeah, then people will know whose it is in case it ever _falls_ off." Warrick said with a snigger. Even Sara had to giggle at this.

"Ha ha ha. Very funny," said Nick sarcastically, "don't quit your day job. "

"Remind me to tell Catherine." said Warrick sniggering even more.

After Sara had put the kit away, they returned to the hedge. Nick snapped on new latex gloves to avoid contaminating the evidence. Warrick stood where she had earlier and shined his flashlight over the spot found something that looked like a burnt sausage. He crouched down and picked it up. It was a finger.

"Well this DEFINITELY fell off," commented Warrick. But there was no hint of sarcasm or humour in his voice or on his face.

"More like _flew_ off," corrected Sara. She looked and sounded dead serious.

"Well," said Nick, "Bag it."

He bagged the finger. And everyone returned to their search.

Sara knelt down and shone her mag-light over a muddy footprint. Red mud.

_-()- Looks like they belonged to boots. -()-_ she thought.

She tape-lifted it and put it in a manila envelope they used to store certain pieces of evidence. She would show it to the guys later when they conferred about the evidence. She stood up and mentally checked everything. All they needed to do was take a look at the car now. She looked around and found Warrick checking the lawn one last time to make sure they had everything. He'd gone over it the first time after Nick had bagged the finger and once now.

_-()- Damn, that was a funny story. How come he doesn't tell me stories like that ? Maybe it was a **guy** thing. But then again, he'd told **Catherine**, and she was definitely **not** a man. Oh well. -()- _

Nick was combing the top part of the drive way, while she finished off the bottom. She noticed that he was careful not to use his left palm much, or when he did, he didn't exert much pressure on it. She saw Officer Jacobs standing on the sidewalk to the left of the driveway, his notebook in hand.

"Hey, anyone question him?" she nodded her head in his direction. Nick and Warrick stopped, and looked up.

"Yeah," said Warrick.

"Did he question the neighbours?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Nick.

"Do we have his notes on that?" Sara asked again. Nick and Warrick exchanged looks of confirmation.

"Nope." answered Nick.

"Should I tell him to come down to the labs and write a report, or take the notepad and copy down the notes and return them to him?" she questioned. Nick and Warrick exchanged a look again before Warrick said, "That was usually Grissom's call."

"Okay, whose call is it now?" Sara asked. They all exchanged looks this time.

"I think we should vote," said Nick.

"Well I say we call Grissom for confirmation," said Sara.

They looked at Warrick, who seemed deep in thought.

"Well," said Nick after sharing a look with Sara.

"I think we should call Grissom." said Warrick. He took out his cell phone. It rang several times before Warrick disconnected. "He's busy. Won't pick up." He told the others.

"Well then," said Nick, "voting time !"

"Who votes for Sara?" asked Warrick. Nick raised half a hand, so did Warrick. Sara however raised her whole arm.

"Okay, two for Sara. Now who votes for Nick?" asked Warrick again. Nick raised his whole and Warrick and Sara raised only half.

"Two for Nick as well. Now, who votes for me?" asked Warrick. He raised his arm whole, but neither Nick nor Sara raised theirs.

"What !" he exclaimed. "I voted for you guys."

"Yeah," said Sara.

"But you've had a go before." explained Nick.

"Fine. So why don't we flip a coin between the two of you." said Warrick. He took out a coin but before he could flip it, Sara took it from him.

"I have a better idea. Why don't we share?" she said.

"Why?" questioned Nick in a whiny tone.

"What do you mean?" asked Warrick.

"Nick and I rotate the decisions. And it's your job to keep track of the order." explained Sara.

"Sounds good, we might not get a chance like this again." agreed Warrick.

"Okay," Nick hesitated as he said it.

"I'll take this call," said Sara. "Nick bag the notebook. Warrick ask him to meet us back at the lab to right a report. As he writes the report, copy the notes from his notebook."

"Got it." answered Nick.

"I'm on it," said Warrick and they left to do their jobs.

Sara packed up and put her kit in the Tahoe. She got behind the wheel. She didn't trust Warrick's driving and Nick might make his cut worse, so she decided it was her job. Warrick hopped into the passenger seat as Nick belted himself in the back. Their kits were strapped in so they were fine. She started the car and they pulled out of the driveway they had parked in front of.

"Nick, you had better have Dr. Robbins or David take a look at your cut. You may have a piece of glass stuck in it," she warned.

"If you say so . . ." Nick was not thrilled to have a coroner take a look at his cut.

-X-

Catherine was driving to the scene again. Grissom and her had made small talk at the beginning, but now the car was enveloped in comfortable silence as they waited for the light to change.

"Declan is so adorable." she stated randomly out of the blue. "Reminded me of when Lindsay was that small. Playing peek-a-boo with her, it was SO much fun."

"Yeah, she was cute," added Grissom as he snapped out of his reverie which had once more drifted to the topic of his blonde co-worker. He remembered that little angel and the first time he had held her. He felt like proud father. Too bad he wasn't her real father. But since then, he'd tried to be there for that little girl. He'd been there for most of her firsts, and Grissom hoped that he'd be there the rest.

"I'd do anything for her, she's the most important thing in my life," she said with an affectionate smile as she remembered her daughter. "Too bad she doesn't have a brother or sister." She said quite sadly. "It must be hard being an only child whose mother works all the time."

"It isn't that bad," said Grissom quietly. Catherine gave him a curious look. Then it hit her. "I'm SO sorry! I didn't mean it that way. Of course it isn't that bad . . . you were one . . . and look how you turned out!" she said apologetically.

"Yeah. I'm 'bug-man'," he replied sarcastically.

"In a nice way," she said trying to convince him, "it's like being called 'Batman'. Now HE is cool! So picture yourself as 'Bug-man' avenger of good! "

She was rewarded with a small smile. She beamed at him. She was glad he didn't think of himself as a freak. That was what was so great about him, he never cared. No matter what he did, he was himself. She was personally very happy about that. She didn't want to be friends with someone who always worried about what people would think about them. He was a 'Crime Scene Investigator' for Christ's sake! You can't avoid what people think when they hear what you do for a living. Besides she had had enough of that attitude back in her stripper days.

By now they were there. They could see the light the police sirens gave out. They parked the Tahoe and hopped out. Grissom grabbed his kit and Catherine's as she got out of the car. He waited for her as she locked up and started to walk towards him. "Always the gentleman, huh? 'Bug-man'!" she said as she took her kit. He chuckled and they made their way to the crime scene with Grissom in the lead.

They stepped under the tape at the same time, but it was Grissom who saw the victim first. Catherine's view was blocked by policemen and reporters.

"Cath," Grissom warned concern laced in his voice, "I don't think you'll like this."

"Don't worry I'll handle this," she said as she brushed past the policemen blocking her view. She realised what Grissom was so worried about. The body had been mutilated. And it stunk like hell. This was going to be SO much work.

Detective Lockwood approached them.

(A/N: He was the Detective who worked with Catherine and Nick in Season3 premiere 'Revenge Is Best Served Cold'.)

"Her name's Ginger Collins, age 40, the area's pretty clean, except for where the body is. By clean, I mean NO blood. But we did find her driver's licence. You think it might be a kill and dump?" he informed them.

"Only the evidence can tell us," said Grissom calmly. He knew that many people and sometimes even detectives made mistakes of formulating ideas of what happened before looking at the evidence. Therefore reading it wrong. But where had he heard that name before?

"Crap . . ." sighed Catherine.

Then he remembered. Hadn't Catherine mentioned this woman before.

"I take it, you know her?" he asked her.

"Trust me Gil, you don't want to know . . ." she said.

"I'm sure you told me her name somewhere before this," he argued, stubbornly.

"Yeah don't worry, your memory isn't fading," she circled the body, "she was the one who showed me the tricks of the trade. Well she was the one Sam told to teach me the tricks."

Grissom heard the way she said, 'Sam' the name of her biological father. It was with disgust. He noticed she had crouched down, so he followed suite. He was about to say something, when she looked at him, gave him a sarcastic smile and said, "Think of the past, and it bites you in the ass."

Grissom smiled. This was Catherine's way of spouting out philosophy. He often wondered where it came from. But it didn't matter. He liked it every time she did that.

-X-

Warrick, Nick and Sara reached the lab in fifteen minutes. Nick and Sara constantly had to bear the brunt of Warrick's grumblings of 'I could have gotten us there faster!'. They entered the locker room and freshened up before getting to work. They didn't want any ash, smoke or dust particles contaminating the evidence as they worked. They met in the rec. room to discuss what to do next.

"Well," said Nick, "it's my call."

Sara and Warrick nodded in agreement. Just then Brass entered the room with a file in hand. "The kids are ready for interrogation. Here's a few notes on them in the file: Name, Date of Birth, school, things like that." He informed them. He held out the file and waited for someone to take it. It was Nick who did. He then waited there, to see what would happen next. Nick looked at the notes in the file Brass had handed him.

"Sara, go interrogate Elizabeth. Warrick, go check on the notes we bagged. I'll go interrogate Tyler." They split up after that. Warrick headed for his interrogating room, while Nick and Sara along with Brass headed for theirs.

They found the kids in Brass's office where he had asked them to wait while he took down details.

"Hi," said Nick, introducing the two of them, "my name is Nick Stokes and this is one of my partners Sara Sidle. Our other partner Warrick Brown is not here at the moment. He's getting started on the evidence while we ask you a couple of questions.

"You mean 'interrogate' us," interrupted Tyler quietly.

Nick and Sara look shocked. Tyler shrugged. "We are here in a police station, and we witnessed our parents' deaths. That makes us witnesses. And you guys need our details on the murder. So obviously you have to interrogate us." Tyler explained to them.

"Damn! He's smart!" murmured Nick, quite shocked.

"Good luck!" Sara murmured back with a smirk.

"Well, Tyler, you're with Nick. Elizabeth you are with me," said Sara.

Tyler got up, but Ellie didn't. She motioned to Declan whom she was holding. "I can't right now. He's a light sleeper. Take Tyler and after you're done with him I'll go."

"Seems okay with me," said Sara. "I'll stay here with you, till they are done."

Nick, Tyler and Brass exited.

Sara had really not wanted to do this she was very very, bad with kids, but she knew this mattered to Brass so she tried to put in some effort.

"So how you put him to sleep?" she asked Ellie.

"I didn't. one of the other C.S.I did it. I think her name was Catherine." replied Ellie.

"Oh. Of course. She has a daughter you know," Sara filled her in, "so of course she would have more experience."

She felt a bit jealous. Grissom must definitely like Catherine better. She could handle kids, discuss work, cook, take care of a house, make him smile - even laugh - sometimes. She was his best friend, well that's what she heard Brass say. And she had even heard, form Nick and Warrick, that they celebrated the anniversary of when they met. She felt left out. Grissom was old friends with Brass and Catherine. Nick and Warrick were always competing; she had no one to talk to. There was always Greg . . . but he was everyone's friend and really didn't hang out with anyone in particular. So that was out of the question.

Ellie looked bored, with no one to talk to, it was going to be a long night.

-X-

Well that's the end of Chapter2. I shall post Chapter3 soon. Enjoy. BTW: R/R ! Please?


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